On Friday, the Israeli air force executed a series of intense airstrikes targeting mountainous areas overlooking the southern Lebanese city of Nabatiyeh. According to the Israeli military, these strikes aimed at underground facilities utilized by the militant group Hezbollah. The assault was notable for its intensity, involving the use of bunker buster bombs, as reported by Lebanon's state-run National News Agency.
Following the conclusion of the 14-month Israel-Hezbollah war, which ended with a U.S.-brokered ceasefire in November, Israel has maintained a campaign of nearly daily airstrikes across southern Lebanon. However, the strikes conducted on Friday were characterized as being more severe than those typically seen in recent months.
The Israeli military conveyed in an official statement that the air operations specifically targeted a site operationally used by Hezbollah for managing its fire and defense systems. They claimed the strikes were part of a broader initiative to dismantle significant underground projects associated with the militant group, rendering them completely inoperative.
Prior to the strikes, the Israeli army had reportedly detected efforts by Hezbollah to rehabilitate its infrastructure in the region, prompting their preemptive assault on various sites. In the wake of these airstrikes, there was no immediate word regarding any casualties inflicted on either side.
Hezbollah faced severe losses during the previous war, which resulted in over 4,000 fatalities in Lebanon alone and left behind destruction estimated at $11 billion. In contrast, the conflict also resulted in the death of 127 individuals in Israel, including 80 soldiers. Following the ceasefire agreement, Hezbollah was mandated to withdraw from positions close to the Israeli border in southern Lebanon and was prohibited from maintaining an armed presence south of the Litani River.
Significantly, the airstrikes on Friday occurred north of the Litani River, in a region that has been a contested area in the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hezbollah. As tensions continue to simmer in the region, the international community watches closely to see how these developments may affect the fragile peace established by the ceasefire.
